Sunday, April 13, 2008

Mommy Tips Please












Ok I need some Mommy 101

I've figured out that I don't need to blow dry Sage's hair, it drys pretty fast (Thank you Katy and Emily) Guess I will have to wait and see about changing diapers on an airplane...but here are some things that have been crossing my mind lately...so all you Mommies out there...I need your help.

1. How old does Sage need to be before I put sunscreen on her, and what kind do I use?
2. What is the best way to clean up the poopy blow outs on clothes? Hot/Cold/Throw it away (this has always worked well for me in the past) :o)
3. How old were your kids before they did the rice cereal thing? Did you mix with breastmilk/formula...what brands did you like best?
4. At what age did you transition your kids out of your bed. I just moved her into an arms reach bassinet because I can't imagine her alone in her room.
5. Aside from putting Saline in her nose and sucking snot and using a cool mist humidifier, any other way to clear the snot?
6. What kind of jar baby food did you give first and did your kids like the best? (Emily thanks for telling me about doing vegi's first since they are gross and all the same at once for allergies)
7. If any of you did formula at all how would you warm the bottles up if you were on the road?
8. Best baby item/toy your kids (or you) couldn't live without?
9. How do you know if your baby is cutting teeth and what do you do? Besides wiping with a cloth at her baths, should I be doing anything to "brush" her teeth at this point?
10. Another poop question. Sage seems to poop only on Sunday's and Wednesdays. Is it normal for kids to go a few days?

Ok I am sure this will be one of many HELP emails, and since I know no other Mommies except my cousins, I am counting on you guys (Katy, Angie, Becky, Em). Lots of Love!!

5 comments:

Katy said...

Okay I will try my best to answer a few! 1. Totally normal for a breast fed baby to go up to seven days with out pooping. There is less waste in breast milk and more in formula. As long as when she goes her poop is nice and soft!
2. Sunscreen. They say six months old and for sure PABA free. If she absolutely has to be in the sun before six months I would put it on her anyway, but best to keep them out of the sun in the shade until 6 months.
3. For me spray and wash works most of the time on the poopy blowouts. That's with breast feeding. I hear formula poop is harder to get out! I wash everything but the whites in cold water.
4. I mixed rice cereal with breast milk with Gracie but water with the boys, didn't seem to make a difference to them. Waited until they were six months. I figured it just adds more to do to my list so might as well wait! LOL
5. I use the wash cloth for their teeth, but they do have toddler and even infant toothbrushes if you want to go that route.
6. Favortie toy??? Geesh I think I liked my kick and play bouncer the best for the stage that you are at, and it seemed to last unitl they were about 6 months or so. They all loved it. I'm going to have to find another one! I think this is the longest comment I have ever left! Hope this all helps! Love ya,
Katy

Emma said...

Holy cow lol, there are a lot of questions!!! I can't really answer any better then anyone else. Most of my answers are the same as Katy's, except her favorite toy was her buster elephant. Oh, and on the airplane, they have baby changing stations, just ask the stewardess which bathroom has the changing table. It's actually not too bad.

Love ya, don't worry, you're doing great, and a slip up here and there doesn't mean your a bad mother, it means your human lol.

Angie said...

I think that I agree with Katy and Em on just about everything. I started cereal at 4 months with 3 out of 4 of my kids and I mixed it with breast milk, water and formula (whatever I had on hand). I use Water Babies (pink bottle) sunscreen. It's just what my doctor told me to use. My last two boys didn't get teeth utnil they were a year old and Sarah doesn't have any yet so I always use a baby toothbrush (trying to get them used to it). I don't know if my kids really had a favorite toy but they all loved the Ultra Saucer as soon as they were strong enough to sit in it. The whole bed thing....I think everyone does that different. I had my kids on their own really early. They were all sleeping through the night shortly after 2 months and I didn't really want to have to "break the habit". It was tough at first but they adjust. Okay, that's all from me. I hope it helps. You can always email if you have more questions, I really don't mind at all.

And like Em said, you are doing a great job. Just trust your motherly instincts.

Love, Ang

Becky Avella said...

I'll try to add to this. I agree with all the above advice, especially the ultrasaucer. That is a MUST HAVE in my opinion. : ) It was the way I got to take a shower every day.

I'm a huge fan of Oxy Clean, both the spray and the powder. I add the powder to every load now except for my darks. It's been a miracle for getting stains (and other stuff) out.

For feeding the girls, I did rice cereal at four months with Karissa and tried with Amy, but she couldn't swallow until 9 months, so everything that went in came right back out again.

I had to do formula and from the beginning I mixed them with lukewarm tap water so I'd never have to be stuck needing to heat up a bottle. They didn't seem to mind.

And for cutting teeth, I loved the teething tablets. They are all natural and you just let them dissolve in their mouths, under the tongue or on the gum. It seemed to work really well and helped the girls sleep better.

Whew......long comment : ) Hope some of it is helpful. We all just figured this out by trial and error and from tips from other moms.

Love,
Becky

Stephanie said...

Isn't it great to think that pretty soon you'll be the girl with all the answers to give the next new mom. Fun right?! I just wanted to say I love spray n'wash and that you can get it jumbo sized at Costco. I've also been known to throw away a onsies here and there too though because sometimes it's not worth the trouble, ya know. One great trick I learned, not until the second one, that you can strip a baby out of a super poopy onsie through the neck hole. I'm guessing that's why they make those shoulder flap things? That way you don't have to worry about getting it all over the rest of her, or the worst, in her hair! :)